The tango "Cielito mío" we know from Rodolfo Biagi's orchestra didn't start out as a tango. It's originally a Mexican copla, a genre of folk music that origins from Spain. The title of the original song is "Cielito lindo". It was popularised at
the end of the 19th century by author Quirino Mendoza y Cortés and is still well-known in Mexico.
"Cielito lindo" in the original form has been recorded by lots of artists. Here are a couple links:
Pedro Infante
Recorded 1957
🔗 YouTube
A super pretty modern version by Marta Gomez:
🔗 YouTube
We can hear in these recordings that the original "Cielito lindo" is not in 4/4 time, it's in 3/4 time. Tango composer and orchestra leader Osvaldo Fresedo changed it into a tango simply by adapting the rhythm to 4/4 time. The tango version also got
new lyrics by Osvaldo Fresedo's brother Emilio Fresedo, and the title was changed to "Cielito mío".
This isn't a unique case. There are a few examples of popular music from different genres being adapted into tango. In the case of Cielito mío, the tango sources I've seen mention Fresedo as the composer, which I think is a bit of an exaggeration: changing the time signature and rhythm on an already exsisting melody is not the same as composing a new melody. We can still appreciate the result, of course!
Here are a few recordings of the tango version:
Carlos Gardel
Recorded 1921
🔗 YouTube
Orchestra: Osvaldo Fresedo
Instrumental
Recorded 1927
🔗 YouTube
Orchestra: Osvaldo Fresedo
Singer: Luis Díaz
Recorded 1932
🔗 YouTube
Orchestra: Osvaldo Fresedo
Singer: Ricardo Ruiz
Recorded 1939
🔗 YouTube
Orchestra: Rodolfo Biagi
Instrumental
Recorded 1954
🔗 YouTube
More information, including a list of versions about "Cielito lindo":
🔗 Wikipedia
More TANGO NOTES articles:
🔗 Articles page